


Christmas Wish Fulfilled

by Skyler10



Category: Doctor Who, Doctor Who & Related Fandoms, Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Christmas Fluff, F/M, First Christmas, Flirting, Fluff, Kissing, Norway (Country), Post-Episode: s04e13 Journey's End, Romance, Wishing on stars
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-20
Updated: 2016-12-20
Packaged: 2018-09-09 23:41:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,697
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8918155
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Skyler10/pseuds/Skyler10
Summary: Rose and Tentoo (and Jackie) have just been left at Bad Wolf Bay. With the TARDIS coral in the Doctor’s pocket and reservations at a local inn, they have to wait until the morning to get a ride back to London. What Tentoo doesn’t know is that he was the unexpected answer to a special wish: a Christmas wish.





	

**Author's Note:**

  * For [JennySmithInTARDIS](https://archiveofourown.org/users/JennySmithInTARDIS/gifts).



> For my secret Santa partner: @jennysintardis for the prompt: "Tentoo being very insecure on his first night in Pete's world. Rose has accepted him almost immediately as the Doctor and comforts/reassures him." Hope you enjoy!!! Also for TPP’s bingo prompts “wish” and “lights.”

 

_Every night for almost a year now, Agent Rose Tyler has been feeling a little foolish. Mainly because every night, no matter which planet or universe she is located at the time, she looks up to the sky and makes a wish on the first star she sees. It is ridiculous; she knows. But last Christmas Eve, she made a promise to a new friend, and herself, and - even though he doesn’t know it yet - to **him**. And, she reminds herself as she launches the dimension cannon for what she desperately hopes will be the last time, she always keeps her promises. _

* * *

The TARDIS disappeared into the cold Norwegian air, leaving the beach strangely quiet. The roar of the waves and Jackie’s shouts about calling Pete faded into background noise as the Doctor and Rose’s eyes met.

“Now what?” was the clear question. Prevent all of reality from being destroyed? Check. Defeat the Daleks (again)? Check. Grow a TARDIS? Make peace with a human lifespan? Adjust to the myriad differences in this universe of which he was sure a living Pete and zeppelins were the least of oddities?

The Doctor’s eyes grew wide and his chest heaved up in down in frantic breaths. No respiratory bypass, then.

But still, like the miracle she was, Rose didn’t pull away. She simply stroked his thumb with her own.

“Doctor?”

At the sound of his name, he came back to himself. He dragged his fingers through his hair like always and took strength from her presence. She searched his expression, trying and failing to read him.

“Oi! You two!” Jackie called from atop a sand dune. She beckoned with impatient waving.

“C’mon.” Rose gave him a sad little half-smile and jerked her head in the direction Jackie had gestured.

“We’re going to have to stay the night in town,” Jackie informed them when they caught up with her. “Pete’s sending the zeppelin, but it won’t arrive until the morning.”

* * *

 

The inn where Pete had called in a reservation for them was decked in evergreen and fairy lights.

“But it’s hardly even cold out!” the Doctor protested at the sight. “Not for _Norway_ , at least!”

“Yeah, we’ve been having some strange weather patterns ever since the stars started going out,” Rose explained. “Think saving the multiverse gave us spring in December.”

“Lucky thing too,” Jackie chimed in. “Didn’t think of the season when you took us to a beach in bloody Norway TWICE, did ya? Couldn’t have been the Bahamas… Or God forbid, actually taking us where we needed to go.”

The Doctor scratched the back of his neck sheepishly. “So, Christmas?”

“Yeah, nearly…” Rose blushed, which the Doctor found curious. “I’ll tell you more later.”

Intrigued, he followed the mother and daughter inside and fidgeted as they checked in. Two rooms. The Doctor wondered what it said about Pete that he had only reserved two rooms. And wondered what all Rose had told her father. Maybe Pete had assumed Jackie and Rose would share? Or maybe Rose had implied that… Well. He hardly dared hope.

Fear shot through him as he realized all he had been assuming. Sure, she had kissed him on the beach, but she hadn’t returned the words. Maybe she was just going along with the other Doctor’s plan? Maybe she had felt obligated or forced to take him in? What exactly had they said to each other in those precious moments on the sand? Anxiety and adrenaline had distracted him from anything besides her acceptance and affirmation. Perhaps in his desperation he had read more into her reactions than she intended. He worried that his wishing had manufactured the impression of a more positive response than she actually…

She was looking at him in expectation. She had her hand extended with his key. He took the room key, but her fingers just wiggled, ready to twine between his. She let the corner of her lip turn up in a hesitant smile.

He exhaled and took her hand in his. On a whim, he dared press a kiss to the back of it, making her smile grow. Either she thought him a complete fool or…

“Hope you don’t mind sharing,” she rushed out. “I just assumed… and Mum snores.”

The Doctor nodded along, part at her honesty and part in confusion. Share what? Oh! OH! It finally clicked in his thick head. She was leading them to their room.

The hallways were decked with holiday cheer and historical knick-knacks. A bust of a prominent-looking town elder wore a Santa hat, and multi-colored lights reflected off the portraits of past innkeepers’ families. Apparently it had been handed down from generation to generation.

“Maybe we can freshen up and then go see the town?” she suggested as they climbed the narrow wooden staircase one would expect to find in a quaint little inn. “And I know this isn’t exactly the kind of shopping you enjoy, but we do need to pick up a few essentials.”

She didn’t look at him as she talked, instead glancing around the second-floor hallway. He followed her lead. Each door had its own wreath, themed with various Christmas items. They came to a stop in front of one with gold and silver stars.

“Well, this is us.” She inserted the key in the slot and opened the door.

They both gasped as they saw the inside of the room. It was gorgeously decorated in silver tinsel and gold baubles. Metallic embroidery was threaded in nine-pointed snowflakes across the duvet and echoed in the designs on candles, light fixtures, and drapery. The artwork on the walls depicted starry, snowy landscapes and the view from the window looked out over the bay.

“Pete. He must have stayed here before and known about this room,” she explained with a knowing smile. “He’s wonderful, Doctor. Really. He’s not like when we met him the first time. You’re going to like him a lot, I promise.”  

“I’m sure I will,” the Doctor reassured. What was going through her head? If only they were telepathically bonded as he had wanted to do so many times in the past but hadn’t allowed himself to even consider with such uneven lifespans. Perhaps one day, now that that problem had been remedied… He caught himself before he got too carried away. Here he was thinking about practically proposing and he didn’t even know if she wanted a romantic relationship with him or just what they had been while they traveled: friends who flirted and had kissed a few times, but never really said the words.

She let go of his hand and jerked her thumb toward the en suite.

“I’m just gonna… I’ll be right back.” She rushed off and he stood awkwardly where she left him. He turned to admire the room and the view again. He admitted, if he had intentionally landed them here, it would have been exactly the romantic vibe he’d aim for. If she even wanted that with him. He reminded himself once more that he was sure of her friendship, but not confident of where his dreams ended and reality began beyond that.

She emerged makeup-less from washing her face, but as beautiful as ever in his eyes. In fact, she seemed to have a new energy in her.  

“Your turn!” she chimed. He obediently took his turn to wash up. As the sweat and sand and salt came off, it seemed to rejuvenate him as well. He took a moment to examine himself in the mirror. Never again would he change faces. The vanity in him had to admit he liked that idea. This was one of his favorites, after all. He did his best to arrange his hair with no gel and made a mental note to get some while they were out. One more item he’d have to learn to make do with the Earth version of.

Hand in hand, they joined back up with Jackie and made their way to the town shopping district.

* * *

 

The little Norwegian village brought in city folk from Bergen but also tourists from all across the world, mostly families hoping to pet a reindeer and experience the setting of _Frozen_ (which had released several years earlier in this universe, to the Doctor’s surprise). Brochures at one shop told them most visitors traveled on to see the Northern Lights and go on whale watches and climbs mountains or glaciers.

“Romantic getaway!” one salesman called from his kiosk, giving the Doctor a wink and a nod in Rose’s direction.

 _If only…_ thought the Doctor. He would be fine either way, he told himself, even if she just wanted to remain friends, Time Lord and companion, partners in Earth-defending. He kept a close watch on her all day, trying to decipher if her little touches and smiles and flirting were just her being herself or if they were special for him.

They gathered a few necessities from the corner store before the fun part of the shopping began. Christmas brought out all the craftsmen selling their jams and scarves and woodwork to a glass-enclosed marketplace. The Doctor brightened and bounced from table to table along the walkway, testing samples and recommending the best ones for Rose to try. When she agreed that a jam really was the best ever or convinced him to buy a maroon scarf and hat to match his shirt or when he insisted she needed the mittens she was fawning over, she held her mobile up to the craftsman’s pay station, and they would be on their way. The Doctor marveled that foreign currency exchange and mobile payments had come so far in this universe so early. It seemed time really did move faster here in Pete’s World, even if just for differences in media and technology. He hoped it didn’t apply to aging. He was already limited to a human lifespan. He couldn’t bear if their time together was even shorter because of the differences in this universe.

Rose brought him back once again from his anxieties with her tongue-touched smile and a tug on his new scarf. She pulled him down a bit and stretched up to peck a kiss to his lips. He blushed and warmed in surprise.

“You think too much,” she admonished. “I can tell you’re worrying again. We’ll talk later, I promise. Let’s just… enjoy this. Our third first date.” Her teasing smile tried but failed to hide her vulnerability at the last bit. Perhaps she just needed reassuring that he still wanted her as well?

“I like the sound of that,” he agreed softly. He cupped the back of her head and kissed her once more, cutting it off more quickly than he would have liked since they were in public.   

Jackie had long since abandoned them to their silliness for more “efficient” shopping, as she had claimed. Really, she had known they needed time alone. She texted Rose after a while that she was headed back to the inn and that they should too. Nights were long and came early here, and though it wasn’t Norway’s usual winter cold, the temperature would drop significantly once the sun went down. Rose and the Doctor knew all this, of course, but neither could bear to break up the lighthearted adventurous camaraderie they had so easily slipped back into. Thus, they stayed out among the villagers until their stomachs were rumbling. The samples of food from the marketplace tables had been a good snack, but now it was time for something more substantial.

The Doctor spotted a chippy not far ahead of where they were walking along the snow-dusted street. Street lamps with large red bows attached lit their path. Shoppers crowded into pubs where Christmas music played loudly, and window displays showed off clocks and toys and seasonal wares.

“What do you say, first date tradition?” he gestured to the chippy, which was about to close for the evening.

Her content little smile widened to a grin and she said the magic word. “Run!”

Her mittened hand held tight to his bare one as she pulled him along. They arrived just in time.

* * *

 

They ate their fish and chips as they wandered back through town, both knowing that the playful day was coming to an end. The magic of Christmas had helped them forget their insecurities, but they both knew when they reached the inn a very real conversation was needed about their future and what had happened earlier that morning and who they were to each other now. The Doctor felt his stomach twist in knots, not from the fish and chips, but from the way Rose subtly withdrew from him the closer they got to the inn. He mirrored her silence and didn’t take her hand once they had finished their dinner.

Once inside, they ran into Jackie as they passed the inn’s restaurant. She was on a video call with Pete and Tony, so they didn’t stay but waved hello and headed up to their room with promises to Tony that he could meet the Doctor as soon as they got home.

“He never gets tired of hearing our stories,” she confessed, breaking their uneasy silence as they climbed the stairs.

“Good to know,” the Doctor noted. “Perhaps that will keep him from being jealous.”

“Jealous?” She turned to him in curiosity as he unlocked the door.

“Yeah, he’s had you to himself his whole life. Now here comes me to steal you away.” He held the door open for her, but she stood in the doorway for a moment, reading his expression. Her moment of awe and emotion vanished as quickly as it had come, and she followed him inside, eyes twinkling.

“Oh yeah? And where are you sweeping me off to then, Mr. my-TARDIS-fits-in-my-pocket?” Her teasing allowed him a moment to breathe. They were here. In their room. The talk they needed to have was happening, and oh, his brilliant Rose was doing her best not to scare him off and he loved her for it.

“I dunno,” he mused, following her example in disrobing of their outerwear. “Perhaps we can travel a bit here on Earth. All new to me, you know. A fresh adventure.”

With the door shut and nothing to distract them now, Rose faced him fully for the first time in hours. Instead of the excitement for the future he had hoped for, he saw she was wearing the same look that had been a brief flicker of something deeper when he opened the door for her and mentioned “stealing her away.” To his horror, he saw tears springing to her eyes. He hardly had time to register it, however, as she was flinging her arms his neck and hugging him tight.

She was mumbling something over and over, but he couldn’t tell what.

“Rose?” Muscle memory kicked in and he stroked his hands across her back to soothe her. He wasn’t even registering the words he was chanting, as perplexed as he was as to what had just happened as soon as the door was closed. “It’s alright; I’m here. It’s ok, love. I’m right here.”

Rose backed away the slightest bit, enough that he could see her face and hear her words clearly.

“That’s what I was saying,” she laughed through her tears. “You’re _here_. I found you. I’ve got you back. My Doctor, I’ve got you _back_!”    

She was so incredulous, mapping his every freckle, the wonder of it all too much for her take. All he could do was stand there, holding her, whispering “yes, I’m here. And yes, I’m yours.”

This had been what she needed to hear, it occurred to him, as she drew him into a snog more passionate than even their embrace on the beach. More passionate than any other he had ever experienced. _If this is what it means to be star-crossed lovers,_ he thought as her tongue pressed into his ready mouth, _I’m all for it_.

She backed away after a long while that was still too soon for his liking and stepped away, ducking her head with a hot blush on her cheeks. Her lips were slightly swollen and red and he marveled once more at her beauty.

“So, yeah,” she feigned with a nonplussed shrug. “I think, maybe, I _might_ still be in love with you, if that’s alright.”

The Doctor chuckled and drew her back in, causing her to break character and giggle along with him.

“I’d certainly hope so after a kiss like that. Wow.” He shook his head in disbelief. “Rose Tyler, has anyone ever told you you’re the best kisser in the multiverse?”

“Yeah?” She eyed his lips again. “You’re not too shabby yourself.”

“In fact, I think I’d like to keep kissing you every day for as long as we live.” He dared meet her honey eyes with the full intensity of his dark chocolate ones. “If you’ll have me.”

“You mean it?” she asked, the last of her uncertainty in her lip bite and the hope in her voice. “You want to be that… My… what? I dunno, my boyfriend?” The corners of her eyes crinkled as she said the last bit, knowing this was a serious moment but trying not to laugh at the absurdity of the impossible coming true in the ways she least expected.

“If you like.” His roguish smile melted her in his arms. “If you’ll be my girlfriend.”

“God, we sound like we’re 12,” she giggled. “Yes, Doctor, I’ll be your girlfriend, for lack of a better term for the person who is going to love you and stay with you forever, just as she promised on a strange planet in another universe.” She lovingly sifted her hands through his messy hair, making him want to purr in contentment.

“Forever,” he echoed. He lifted his gaze as he pressed a kiss to her forehead and caught a glimpse out the window. “Oh, Rose. Look at the sky!”

She turned in his arms, then raced to the window. “The Northern Lights!” 

“Indeed. Also known as the _Aurora Borealis_.” He flipped off the room’s lights and stood behind her to wrap his arms around her waist. “It’s rare that they would show so bright this far south. Well, it would be in our old universe. Just one more wonder to discover about the differences here, I suppose.”

“Or maybe it is still rare and it’s just a sign.”

“What do you mean? Like a sign from the universe?” He raised an eyebrow and glanced down at her even though she couldn’t see him. She kept watching the greens and blues and purples of the lights dancing across the sky.

“Did you ever met the Aurora Trackers in your travels?” she asked, seeming to change the subject.

“No, can’t say that I have.”

“They may be unique to Pete’s World then. They came to Earth and stayed for a while last year. They travel to different planets to research and record all the colors of similar phenomena. They bring artists and soothsayers and all sorts of mystics along with them to interpret the future and all that lot, even as their scientists record the data.”

“Are you telling me you met a troupe of alien researchers and their sidekick space magicians?” He held back a laugh, sensing that this was a more serious conversation than she was letting on.

“Well not when you put it like that.” She turned in his arms, away from the fading light show. “I became quite close to one of them. An old woman. She showed me their ancient ritual. It happens at midnight on what would be their version of our Christmas Eve.”

“Yeah? What kind of ritual?” He was intrigued. It wasn’t like Rose to go along with such things in sincerity.

“They play the most beautiful music.” Her voice softened as she recalled it. She leaned in closer to him as she continued. “And at the stroke of midnight on Christmas Eve, you make a wish. But not just any wish. It has to be your heart’s deepest desire.”

“Oh?” A reverence settled over him, as if she was describing something timeless and pure and powerful.

“Whatever you wish is supposed to come true at Christmastime the next year. Just a silly child’s game, of course,” she brushed off, breaking the spell she was casting.

“Rose.” He held tight to her arms as she turned away to dismiss her own folly. “What did you wish for?”

One look in her eyes told him he already knew. Of course. Of course it would be… but he needed to hear it from her perfect lips. _Please, Rose,_ he internally begged.

“You,” she exhaled. Her lips turned up in a flicker of a wry smile as she continued. “I didn’t specify how or where or when. I just. Needed. You.” She sighed and closed her eyes at the admittance, at the memory of her own desperation. He could only imagine how many nights she had spent longing for him as he had for her. Two hearts screaming out into the void separating their universes. And now…

“And now you’re here,” she finished his thought unknowingly, tears welling up again as she ran her hands across his shoulders and down the front of his bright blue lapels. “You’re real and we can be together now and you’re here.”

“And I am never leaving you again,” he promised. He cupped her cheek and tilted her bowed head until her wet, sparkling eyes met his. “I love you, Rose Tyler.”

“I love you, my Doctor.” She raised up to meet him halfway and this time, when her lips met his there was neither rushing nor desperation nor any ounce of uncertainty left between them. There was only the promise of a Christmas wish fulfilled.

He may not believe in the religions of aliens who chase auroras across the galaxies, but he had seen the Bad Wolf. She had come back to him, over and over, despite all odds.

If there was one thing he believed in, he believed in her.


End file.
